Niagara Falls, New York Cost Of Living

Buy Rent

A-

Overall 18%

Goods & Services 2%

Housing 53%

Date & Last Updated: This data reflects 2019 and was released from C2ER in January, 2020; this is the most current data available.

The cost of living index is based on a national average of 100. For example, if the cost of living is 90, then it is 10% lower than average. If the cost of living is 110, then it is 10% higher than average. The breakdown for each index is as follows: goods & services (33%), groceries (13%), health care (5%), housing (30%), transportation (9%) and utilities (10%). If the cost of living data was unavailable for this city, estimates based upon nearby cities were used.
Index	Niagara Falls	New York	National
Cost of living	82	117	100
Goods & Services	98	108	100
Groceries	96	108	100
Health care	85	101	100
Housing	47	145	100
Transportation	98	102	100
Utilities	96	97	100

Key findings

The cost of living in Niagara Falls is 30% lower than the New York average
The cost of living in Niagara Falls is 18% lower than the national average
Niagara Falls housing is 53% lower than the national average
New York general sales tax is 21% lower than the national average
New York state income tax is 62% higher than the national average

Most Affordable Places to Live in and Around Niagara Falls

See all the best places to live around Niagara Falls

Compare Niagara Falls, NY Cost of Living

See all Niagara Falls poll results

The best places in New York

Here are the best places to live in New York

See the best places to live in & around Niagara Falls

Top 10 cities in New York with the best education system

10 best cities to buy a new house in New York

Salary Calculator

This is how much you would need to earn in

Price difference in compared to

Cost of living index
Goods & Services index
Groceries index
Health care index
Housing index
Transportation index
Utilities index

Median Income & Debt-To-Income Ratio

Median Income	Per Year	Per Month	Max Budget (28% DTI)	Max Budget (36% DTI)
Owners	$48,700	$4,058	$1,136	$1,461
Renters	$19,796	$1,650	$462	$594

To approximate the cost of living and the housing affordability in Niagara Falls, NY, we can look at the percentage of income that is available to be spent on monthly housing, otherwise known as the debt-to-income ratio (DTI). To stay on the safe side, a consumer should not spend more than 28% of his or her gross income on housing-related expenses and costs and not more than 36% of income on all expenses and debts. Homeowners in Niagara Falls have a median income of $48,700. Therefore, the amount that a consumer should spend on housing costs should be no more than $1,136 per month to avoid calamity and poverty. The renters in the city have an income of about $19,796, which would make their monthly maximum allowable rental costs $462.

New York Sales Tax

State	General Sales Tax	With Max Surtax
New York	4%	8.875%

New York Income Tax

State	Income Tax (Low)	Income Tax (High)
New York	4%	8.82%

Goods & Services

Item	Niagara Falls	National avg.	Difference
Haircut	$16.96	$17.49	3.0%
Beauty Salon	$36.14	$38.17	5.3%
Toothpaste	$1.89	$2.32	18.6%
Shampoo	$0.92	$1.01	9.1%
Movie	$10.74	$10.72	0.1%
Bowling	$14.00	$13.86	1.0%

Groceries

Item	Niagara Falls	National avg.	Difference
Ground Beef	$3.43	$3.90	12.0%
Fried Chicken	$1.44	$1.40	3.2%
Milk	$1.77	$1.96	9.8%
Potatoes	$3.74	$3.18	17.5%
Pizza	$9.99	$10.39	3.9%
Beer	$9.49	$9.23	2.8%

Health Care

Item	Niagara Falls	National avg.	Difference
Optometrist	$63.60	$106.34	40.2%
Doctor	$84.00	$115.25	27.1%
Dentist	$84.92	$98.38	13.7%
Ibuprofen	$8.61	$9.26	7.0%
Lipitor	$491.65	$466.47	5.4%

Housing

Item	Niagara Falls	National avg.	Difference
Home Price	$69,200.00	$184,700.00	62.5%
Avg. Mortgage Payment	$1,354.63	$1,273.32	6.4%
Apartment Rent	$648.00	$949.00	31.7%

Transportation

Item	Niagara Falls	National avg.	Difference
Gasoline	$2.80	$2.59	7.9%
Tire Balancing	$41.64	$48.90	14.8%

Utilities

Item	Niagara Falls	National avg.	Difference
All Electricity	$152.08	$167.60	9.3%
Phone	$186.50	$163.42	14.1%

Although the cost of living data is updated regularly, this cost of living information is to be used as estimates only as prices can change on an ongoing basis.

Nearby cities with low cost of living

City, State	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Sloan, NY	3,606	82	-18%
Buffalo, NY	258,989	83	-17%
Tonawanda city, NY	14,991	85	-15%
North Tonawanda, NY	30,935	86	-14%
Cheektowaga, NY	74,673	86	-14%
Niagara Falls, NY	49,180	82	-18%

Cities with similar population

City, State	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Harrisburg, PA	49,160	88	-12%
La Mirada, CA	49,130	144	44%
Methuen Town, MA	49,043	120	20%
Rancho Santa Margarita, CA	49,038	160	60%
Severn, MD	49,017	127	27%
Niagara Falls, NY	49,180	82	-18%

Source: The Niagara Falls, NY cost of living data displayed above is derived from the Council for Community and Economic Research (C2ER) for 2019.

Niagara Falls, NY Cost of Living

Find real estate listings

Find rental listings